Know what it costs to build
before anyone quotes you.
Enter the areas, let the AI measure them from your drawings, or paste a property listing link - and Costing does the takeoff: every component in the building, priced on a low-high market range you control with a slider.
Free account · works on any device · installs like an app
A quantity surveyor’s cost plan, built as a tool
Feasibility tells you whether the project makes money. Costing digs into exactly what the construction costs - component by component.
Elemental takeoff
Floor area, storeys and wall height become footprint, perimeter, wall, roof and glazing areas - the quantities behind every trade.
Every component priced
Sixteen element groups from preliminaries to landscaping - slab, framing, roofing, kitchens, bathrooms, plumbing, electrical.
Ranges, not guesses
Each component carries a low and a high market rate - or a base rate ± % - so you always see best, expected and worst case.
Live Australian prices
Benchmarks for concrete, timber, steel, bricks and more - indexed quarterly to the ABS - flag lines outside the typical range.
Sliders & overrides
A slider on every line sets where in the range the price lands - or type a real quote straight over any quantity or rate.
Structure & finish levels
Switch timber to steel or tiles to Colorbond and the breakdown reprices instantly - with Budget to Prestige finish levels.
Drawings or a listing link
Drop floor plans into the assistant and AI measures the inputs - or paste a listing link and the home becomes a priced estimate.
Quotes, scenarios & escalation
Attach real quotes so costs go firm, pin scenarios side by side, and escalate the total to your start date at the ABS trend.
Baseline & variations
Lock the estimate at contract and every later change becomes a variation line with its running delta against the baseline.
Multi-dwelling, margins & templates
Scale quantities across N dwellings with a repetition discount, add a developer margin to the build-up, and template any estimate.
Learns from your builds
Rates you locked before resurface as "your last rate" - and what you actually paid per stage in Construction shows beside the market.
Review it, then send it on
A candid AI review critiques rates, markups and scope - then one click sends the plan to Feasibility or a Construction budget.
From a floor area to a full cost plan
Describe the building - or let the AI measure it
A dozen inputs drive the whole model: areas, storeys, bedrooms, wet areas, frame, walls, roof and floor. The heuristic takeoff turns them into the quantities a QS would measure - and every one of them can be corrected by hand.
- Areas, counts and construction-type selectors
- Glazing share and regional cost index sliders
- Drawings upload: AI fills the inputs from your plans
Every line is a range you control
Market prices for concrete, timber, steel and trades move constantly and vary by region. Costing prices every component on a low-high range, scaled by your regional index and finish level - then a slider per line sets where in the range you believe the price lands.
- Low / expected / high carried through every total
- Regional index for metro vs remote pricing
- Real quotes typed straight over any line
| Component | Qty | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concrete slab | 168 m² | $15,960 | $26,880 |
| Roof tiles | 158 m² | $9,164 | $15,010 |
| Plasterboard | 634 m² | $24,092 | $39,308 |
| Bathroom fitouts × 2 | 2 ea | $16,000 | +$44,000 |
The number, with its honest error bars
Trade costs roll up through preliminaries, builder’s margin, contingency and GST into a total construction cost - shown low, expected and high, with the rate per square metre and a bar chart of where the money goes.
- Element group subtotals and share-of-cost bars
- Preliminaries, margin, contingency and GST dialled in
- Rate per m² to sanity-check against the market
Quotes make it firm, the baseline keeps it honest
As real builder and trade quotes arrive, attach them to their lines - the range collapses to the quoted figure and the summary shows how much of the trade cost is locked in. Lock the whole estimate at contract, every later change becomes a tracked variation, and the one-click AI review critiques the rates, the markup stack and anything the scope is missing.
- Quoted lines go FIRM with zero uncertainty - the band tightens
- Variations carry a running delta vs the contract baseline
- An AI review flags dear rates, thin contingency and missing scope
Just tell it what happened
Ask "why is the frame so expensive?", paste a listing link to cost the home on it, or say "switch to steel frame and add a $12,000 pool heating allowance." Attach or drag in documents and the AI reads them straight into the app for your review.
A cost plan you can hand to the bank
The PDF report reads like a quantity surveyor’s elemental estimate: the basis of measurement, every component with its quantity, rate range and cost range, group subtotals and the summary build-up to the total - with the AI review’s verdict printed alongside.
- Basis of measurement - every derived quantity stated
- Elemental breakdown with low / expected / high per line
- Preliminaries, margins, contingency and GST build-up
Frequently asked
How is this different from Feasibility?
Feasibility answers whether a development makes money - land, finance, sales, profit. Costing deep-dives one line of that model: the construction cost itself, itemised into every component with market-rate ranges. Use Costing to firm up the build number, then feed it into Feasibility.
Where do the rates come from?
Each component ships with an indicative Australian supplied-and-installed rate range, scaled by your regional cost index and finish level. They are planning figures - as real quotes arrive, type them over any line and the estimate hardens.
Can it really read my drawings?
Upload floor plans, elevations or a specification and the AI reads gross floor area, storeys, bedrooms, wet areas, garage and construction types into the inputs. A property listing link works the same way - the advertised beds, areas and finish become a priced estimate. Always sanity-check the measured figures - it is a fast first pass, not a certified takeoff.
Is this a substitute for a quantity surveyor?
No - it is the estimate you build before and between QS engagements: early design, offer stage, bank conversations. For contracts and tax schedules you still want a certified QS. This gets you 90% of the picture in ten minutes.
What buildings does it handle?
Houses, townhouses and low-rise apartments are the sweet spot. Commercial and industrial shells work too - and any missing scope can be added as custom items in any group.
Are my estimates private?
Entirely. Estimates live in your own account, autosave with history, and are never shared unless you export the PDF yourself.
One account. Every tool.
Price the build before you commit to it
Free account. Enter the areas. Get the breakdown.
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